Scott: Thom's show's are a fun farce at best, and I'm pretty sure that's his intention-- and even as a spectacle, it still feels so contrived-- and predictable. I do like Thom and identify with his menswear very much as the actual garments in the store are very appealing to my sense of dressing, but he's no contemporary of Rei. I don't think anyone's even on her level; not Yohji, not Helmut, not McQueen or Gaultier. I am blown away by her skills to fuse design, fashion, culture into her very own vision. Other visionaries like McQueen and Gaultier have always proposed various cultures and periods into their work without ever coming across as homogenous, synthesized or patronizing, which I always appreciate because so many designers are very one-dimensional when it comes to appropriating different cultures into their fashions. But with Rei, she's able to go that one step-- or dimension further, by not just melding the various influences and references, she's able to create something entirely and constantly CDG... I cannot pick apart the point where a reference ends and another starts: She's seamless. I hope that makes sense.

As for Rei's use of polyester: Your views are personal, and I suspect, for you bearbrick, it's a matter of sustainability and environmental? For me, it doesn't detract, or diminish the value of Rei's designs, so I don't have a problem with it. I adore Muiccia's use of synthetics as well, and the pieces I own of hers are mostly her variations of nylon, so I suppose I'm a fan of these cheap fabrics.

Well look and feel again , better still look at the care label with a Japanese translation device if needed. The dramatic pieces from 2011and /2012 were mostly if not all polyester...

All this talk of how wonderful polyester is , boiled , microwaved or otherwise and how creative and malleable it can be etc.....well I suppose the very good people at the yarn factories in Japan , where CDG may have very very strong links with , must be so pleased with how , what's is essentially plastic, has become oh so loved and admired. AND most of all .....how high the price is ESP those fetched by ms K at CdG ..( higher still if there is another round of oil shock/ crisis ...maybe they could use SHALE OIL then )

CDG is a well run conglomerate with very well oiled marketing strategies ...and strategists ( probably made up of psychology professors )

Don't get me wrong i do like CDG , it excites and tittilates me bones ....occasionally .... But boy oh boy , lets see the forest once in a while , while there's some left ( and not plundered by the shale oil conglomerates )

Again, it's her ideas that are worth all the money here, not the fabric she uses. Fashion houses can use the most luxurious materials but have a poverty of design ideas. I would rather invest in creativity.

This is everything I want : madness ,beauty, Vision, talent. What joy it is to see this collection, especially this season , where everything had been so lacking in exactly that!Posted via Mobile Device

excuse me bearbrick,you can spare us the passive-aggression please. nowhere does it imply that polyester is so loved and admired. all that we're saying is that we love how kawakubo works with it. my perceptions of polyester has always been that itchy smelly crap that my grandmother wore in the 60's and 70's. this is not like that. and yes like phuel said,you'd be surprised the designers who do utilise it some form. also that wonderfully soft and silky material called polyamide that's so commonly used is synthetic too......

anyway,the point is,nothing will ever deter the fact that this woman remains numero uno when it comes to boundless,uncompromising ideas and creativity. while i do appreciate somebody like westwood because she continues walking her own path i can't say that's been up on any kind of new idea in recent memory. kawakubo is constantly evolving and pushing the boundaries even during the worst downturns that this industry has gone through. that's why she remains so relevant and ever-present.

excuse me bearbrick,you can spare us the passive-aggression please. nowhere does it imply that polyester is so loved and admired. all that we're saying is that we love how kawakubo works with it. my perceptions of polyester has always been that itchy smelly crap that my grandmother wore in the 60's and 70's. this is not like that. and yes like phuel said,you'd be surprised the designers who do utilise it some form. also that wonderfully soft and silky material called polyamide that's so commonly used is synthetic too......

anyway,the point is,nothing will ever deter the fact that this woman remains numero uno when it comes to boundless,uncompromising ideas and creativity. while i do appreciate somebody like westwood because she continues walking her own path i can't say that's been up on any kind of new idea in recent memory. kawakubo is constantly evolving and pushing the boundaries even during the worst downturns that this industry has gone through. that's why she remains so relevant and ever-present.

We , suddenly it's ...we ? , please try enrolling into fashion history school before you say someone is ignorant ....there is actually no need for you to extoll anything about ms K...least of all to me.

People like Rei, Miuccia, and Helmut have really changed my own disdain for synthetics with their almost alchemists' approach to fashion. They're incorporating and progressing more than the just the traditions of dressmaking to high fashion. They've contributed to debunking that old "itchy smelly crap that my grandmother wore in the 60's and 70's" mentality so that it no longer is a valid perception in terms of synthetics' stature in high fashion. But the fact remains that it's still a non-biodegradable material, nor is it an environmentally-friendly product. So I can understand a certain level of hostility towards it. But if it's just a question of a bourgeois sensibility-- that only silks and cashmeres are luxuries, then that comes off terribly outdated, to me.

She's all about challenging our ideas of how things should be; one senses she gets a kick out of it, and this is part of the reason she does amazing work with this misunderstood textile, as many artists work better under constraints. I also agree that it is an exceedingly hardy fabric, resistant and keeping its colour and shape...a joy to work with and wear...as long as the design is good. And boy does she pull off this challenge that few others can.

Also, I'm no expert but from what I know poly can be made from recycled plastics (I don't think it is the case here, though) and be recycled too. It can be very environmental, no?

although what she does is alchemic in a way, the lowliness of the raw material is not the prime reason for the choice here.
for example in S/S 2002, the fabrics had to be mostly man-made in order to correspond to what she wanted to express particularly. she didn't specify the materials' origins. all she said to the textile designer was "steely". and he researched accordingly, then made and suggested to her various fabrics. as a result many of them were of synthetic fibers. it didn't matter to her whether they are humble or noble.
if you make a japanese textile mill work exclusively for you for one season and create original special fabrics, regardless of what they are made of, it of course requires equivalent value of you who are an observant of fair trade.

btw, it seems that she does like a certain acrylic feel on a personal level as well.

Thanks for the information, runner! Clearly there is a need to think about the collection more deeply and maybe even resort to doing some research to fully appreciate Rei Kawakubo's design process. There really is no justification for looking at this naively. I remember that Issey Miyake developed and used many synthetic fabrics for his designs, so there is definitely great technique involved to warrant the cost of these garments. To simply call it "polyester" and be done with it demonstrates the worst kind of narrow-mindedness. It's a subscription to the obsolete values of "luxury" in terms of "fashion".

PHUEL ..." People like Rei, Miuccia, and Helmut have really changed my own disdain for synthetics with their almost alchemists' approach to fashion. They're incorporating and progressing more than the just the traditions of dressmaking to high fashion. They've contributed to debunking .................friendly product. So I can understand a certain level of hostility towards it. But if it's just a question of a bourgeois sensibility-- that only silks and cashmeres are luxuries, then that comes off terribly outdated, to me. "

PHUEL ..." People like Rei, Miuccia, and Helmut have really changed my own disdain for synthetics with their almost alchemists' approach to fashion. They're incorporating and progressing more than the just the traditions of dressmaking to high fashion. They've contributed to debunking .................friendly product. So I can understand a certain level of hostility towards it. But if it's just a question of a bourgeois sensibility-- that only silks and cashmeres are luxuries, then that comes off terribly outdated, to me. "